iMovie is a simple and flexible video editing software application for Mac and iOS developed by Apple. It is full-featured and has personalized customization features to help you create, edit, organize and share photos and video clips.
Unfortunately, Apple developers have not yet provided a Windows version of iMovie. However, people are still searching for "how to get iMovie on Windows". Given that there is no way to download iMovie for Windows, what would you do?
In fact, you have a vast range of choices on Windows as there are many excellent video editing apps that can all be alternatives to iMovie. Want to explore the best ones? This article has you covered.
Best for: users looking for simple, basic movie and photo editing with transitions
Windows Movie Maker is an entry-level video editing software launched by Windows in 2000. It is mainly used for simple video editing on Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10, so it can be considered the most basic iMovie for PC program.
Unlike iMovie, Windows Movie Maker uses both Storyboard view and Timeline view. You can adjust the video, audio, and image and apply various effects and transitions to achieve the effect you want. One thing I like about Windows Movie Maker is that most effects, transitions and themes are automatically previewed when we hover the mouse cursor over the tool buttons. In comparison, Movie Maker is simpler to use. In addition, it also contains useful editing tools that can split, merge, slow down and speed up videos.
It should be noted that Microsoft stopped supporting Movie Maker in 2017, but you can still download this tool and install it on your PC through this archived download link.
Related post: How to Edit Videos on Windows Movie Maker
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Best for: users looking for quick and simple video editing on Windows 10
The Video Editor app is the successor to Windows Movie Maker. It comes pre-installed in Windows 10 and can be accessed in the Photos app. It is also comparable to iMovie in terms of simplicity.
This is a storyboard video editor that you may not be familiar with, but you can still get started in seconds. You can then explore the usual tools like trim, split, text, motion, 3D effects, speed, rotate, crop, and filters, all of which can edit your video quickly. It is easy to preview the result in the video player window. However, you cannot select the preview and make changes to it. Worth mentioning is its theme library that can mix your video with filters, music, and text styles of different moods, which can make your editing process much easier.
However, the biggest drawback of Video Editor is that the audio editing is not straightforward and you cannot edit the audio track separately.
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Best for: users looking for a universal video editor with high quality export
WonderFox Free HD Video Converter Factory is designed as a video converter but comes with various editing tools that make it a good choice for editing videos on Windows.
The biggest advantage of using it is that it can edit a wide range of videos and audios, including rare formats that other video editors don't support. It offers editing tools such as trimming, rotating, cropping, merging, effects, and watermarking. While basic, it does a pretty good job and saves the original quality up to 4K. However, editing videos in this tool may not be convenient because there is no timeline or storyboard. But the overall interface is easy to navigate.
With this software, you can also download movies and music from sites like YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
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Best for: users looking for advanced video and audio editing on Windows 11
Clipchamp used to be an online editing service but was later acquired by Microsoft and used as a native video editor on Windows 11. It is the replacement of the Video Editor app and Windows Movie Maker, which makes it a competitive iMovie equivalent for Windows.
Compared to its predecessor, Clipchamp has a modern layout and a range of different editing features. In addition to basic tools, it also offers advanced features such as AI dubbing, multi-editing, and overlay editing. You can also enjoy features you may like in iMovie, such as chroma key, audio editing, and 4K editing. It can also adjust the color and contrast of the video for the best visual tone.
What makes Clipchamp better than iMovie is that you can record a video in Clipchamp and start editing immediately. It’s completely free to use the app but some premium features require payment.
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Best for: users looking for professional-grade video editing with animation effects
OpenShot is an open source, cross-platform video editor that can also serve as an iMovie alternative for Windows.
It has a user-friendly interface that allows you to drag and drop files for editing. At the same time, it provides quick editing tools such as copy, trim, align, fade, rotate, animate, and more. Don't worry if you don't know how to get started as there are built-in tutorials to guide you step by step. In addition, Openshot also accepts plug-ins that can extend its editing capabilities to help you do more.
OpenShot has unlimited tracks and layers, making it easy for you to edit videos and audios. It supports multiple video, audio, and image formats, and you can edit them in full-screen mode and preview them in real time, so that every detail is at your fingertips.
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Best for: users looking for advanced video editing with 4K support
Shotcut is also a good alternative to iMovie for PC. It is a free, open-source video editor that makes movie-making easy.
The process of importing video clips, audio, and images is very similar to iMovie, just select the media file and drag it to the timeline at the bottom of the screen. Of course, Shotcut also includes the functions of a general video editor, such as cutting, merging videos, adding some visual effects, etc. The best feature of Shotcut is its large number of video and audio filters, which are fully customizable and can be layered and combined in many interesting ways. However, when applying these effects, Shotcut often turns laggy, especially on low-end PCs. But this can be solved by editing with proxy files.
Shotcut is suitable for users of all levels as its interface is pretty intuitive. If you want a simple but powerful video editor, don’t miss out on this one!
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Best for: users looking for a basic video editor alternative to iMovie for Windows
Avidemux is another free, open-source program for non-linear video editing and media transcoding. It can handle basic editing tasks such as merging, cutting, and adding filters. With its wide range of filters, you can even adjust colors, blur parts of the video, and use the chroma key to replace the "green screen" with an image. You can preview each filter and further adjust the effect for the best result.
However, Avidemux may not be the right answer for beginners because its interface is difficult to navigate. But the good news is that you can find many tutorials online to solve specific editing problems using Avidemux.
Best for: users looking for an easy way to make professional videos
VideoPad Video Editor is a software app that makes it easy to create professional-looking videos. This is easily reflected in its intuitive interface and a wide range of features, which makes it an excellent iMovie alternative for Windows.
You can import videos by dragging and dropping or directly recording videos from your computer. In addition, it has multiple tracks where you can edit video, audio, images, and text separately (note that the free version only supports 2 tracks). In addition to the most basic editing tools such as cutting, copying, and merging, the software also enables you to try out various video, image, and audio effects and preview them in real time. You can also add transition effects to make your video clips smooth and natural.
VideoPad comes with a beginner's guide, so it is not difficult to use. Just be aware that the software can only be tried for a few days for free before it needs to be purchased.
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Best for: users looking to create creative videos using a variety of tools in one place
Previously, we mentioned VSDC Free Video Editor when we recommended the best free video editors without watermark. Today, we want to recommend it again as an iMovie Windows alternative.
This video editor is mainly used to edit video files and create videos of any complexity involving various visual and audio effects. It also has pre-made templates, text effects, and other Quick Styles to make your video editing a breeze. Moreover, you can upgrade to explore premium features including masking, color correction, motion tracking, dance beats, chroma key, text animation, and more advanced transitions and effects.
Similar to iMovie, it can create video projects from a combination of video clips, still images, and audio files. Plus, it can even upload videos to YouTube instantly.
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Tool |
Why Should You Choose It |
Why Shouldn’t You Choose It |
|---|---|---|
Easy to use, offers nice effects and transitions, and can share directly to platforms like YouTube and Facebook. |
It's discontinued and doesn't support some modern video formats like MKV and MOV. |
|
Pre-installed on Windows 10, simple to use, and offers basic editing tools. |
Lacks advanced audio editing and doesn't support some file types like MKV. |
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Supports many video and audio formats, can edit 4K videos, and offers a built-in video downloader. |
No timeline for more detailed editing, lacks support for images, and lacks advanced tools. |
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Modern layout with advanced features like AI dubbing, chroma key, and 4K editing. Can record and edit videos directly. |
Requires an account, and the free version doesn’t support 4K export. |
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Open-source with unlimited tracks and layers, supports plug-ins, and offers animation effects. |
Some features may not work as expected. |
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Free, supports 4K editing, and offers customizable filters with strong format support. |
Can lag when applying effects, especially on slower computers, and lacks a preview for effects. |
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Lightweight, free, and supports a wide range of filters. |
Not very user-friendly. |
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Easy to use with a wide range of video, audio, and image effects. |
The free trial expires quickly. |
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Offers a large library of transitions and effects, advanced video and audio editing, and screen capture features. |
It has a steep learning curve and may lag during editing. |
To sum up, if you are looking for iMovie alternatives for Windows (7/8/8.1/10/11 included), these nine are all good choices. They can provide you with basic editing functions and some also support advanced features. Most importantly, they are free to use. Of course, there are some other well-received video editors worth a try. You can choose one according to your needs.
I hope this article can be helpful to you, and you can feel free to share this article with more people!
No. iMovie is only available on Mac and iOS devices, and there is no official version for Windows.
There is no Microsoft version of iMovie, but you can find many iMovie equivalents for Windows:
Yes. Windows has a built-in video editor called Windows 10 Video Editor in the Photos app, and Clipchamp is available on Windows 11.
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